Daytime taillights--a safety panacea?

msrw

I was recently doing a long ride on my tandem which began very early in the morning. When the sun rose, we forgot to turn off our rear Niterider taillight. After riding for a few hours we noticed that the incidence of cars missing us by two inches when passing, cars coming up behind us and laying on their horns, and all the other dangers from cars that are part and parcel of normal day to day riding a bicycle in Miami had somehow stopped happening.

We started using our taillight during normal day time rides, and cars all of a sudden started giving us space, not honking at us etc. The effect was so pronounced that I started using a Niterider taillight also on my Litespeed during training rides.

So what exactly is going on here? My theory is that when drivers notice bicyclists at greater distances (which a bright light like the Niterider certainly engenders) they somehow find it less annoying that that bicyclist is on the road because the driver can make adjustments early enough to not need to slow down, hit the brakes, get stuck in the right lane until there's a gap for passing in the left lane etc.

The bottom line is that the stress, much of the danger, and a large part of the small annoyances while bicycling in even heavy urban traffic seem to go away when using a very bright flashing rear taillight during daytime riding. I doubt the effect would be the same with the vast majority of LED rear lights--the Niterider is probably 1000 percent brighter than a Vistalight or anything similar.

I don't have any commercial interest in Niterider, but given how well this has worked, I thought it worthwhile to let everyone here know about it.

tacomee

This doesn't suprise me at all-- the trick of dealing with cars is to ride your bike like a car. Taillights make you more car-like and driver respond. I've always thought keeping fast and visable is the best bet.

msrw

I think there might be something to that; although motorcyclists have lights and move at auto-like speeds, and they complain as much as we do about mean streets and dangerous drivers who don't see them.

kf5nd

I have ordered my Niterider tail-light for exactly that purpose... a day-time visible red flasher... it arrives in a few days. We shall see.

mgagnonlv

18-wheelers also complain about car drivers not seeing them, so...

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Michel Gagnon
Montréal (Québec, Canada)

Joe Faust

I've been riding with a Niterider since last summer, when I was right hooked by a van driver who said that he had been unaware that he had just passed me. This was on a quiet country road, in broad daylight. I suspect he was on the phone, or daydreaming, or both. Shortly thereafter I began running my daytime taillight.

Most cars have been giving me a fairly wide berth since I've been using the Niterider taillight, but not all, and I still occasionally have someone cut in front of me to make a turn. Last week with a stop sign on both sides of the road, the driver on the opposite side cut in front of me as he began a left turn. He clearly saw me, and I had to jam on the brake to avoid slamming into him.

There is no safety panacea, perhaps other than to cycle as though everyone else on the road is potentialy hazardous to my health. I drive my car with a similar thought in mind. Knock wood, I've never had a fatal accident.